Maya's POV
By the fourth week of school, I had settled into a routine — quiet classes, quiet walks, quiet lunches. Everything about me blended into the background, and honestly, that felt safe.
But the more I tried to stay invisible, the more one person seemed to notice me.
Kade.
He wasn't doing anything dramatic. It was the simple things — greeting me when I passed, holding the door if I was close behind, asking casually how my classes were going. He did that for other people too, I knew that. He was the block rep, and he had that friendly, easygoing way of moving through the world.
But somehow, the attention felt different when it was directed at me.
Maybe because I wasn't used to it.
I'd never had a real relationship — not even the almost-relationships people talk about casually. I'd always been the quiet one, the one people talked around, not to. So when someone actually looked at me, remembered me, spoke to me… I felt it more than I should.
One afternoon, I stepped out of my room and almost bumped into him in the hallway.
"Oh— sorry," I said quickly, stepping back.
He smiled like it was nothing. "You're good. Headed to class?"
I nodded. "Yeah."
"Wish I had your consistency," he said with a small laugh. "I've already skipped two this week."
I didn't know what to say, so I just gave a small smile.
And somehow, that made him grin more.
"See you around, Maya," he said as he walked off.
My heart was beating faster than it needed to. It wasn't love. It wasn't anything serious. I just… liked the attention. I liked being seen — even if it was just for a few seconds in a hallway that wasn't mine yet.
As I walked to class, I caught myself replaying the moment — his tone, his smile, the way he said my name like he knew it well.
It was nothing.
I told myself it was nothing.
But it didn't feel like nothing.
Not to me.